Straw holder for a beverage container

ABSTRACT

A straw holder for supporting a drinking straw in the mouth of a can having a pull tab and made of a flexible sheet material includes a straw support portion dimensioned for placement above the mouth of a can and comprising an aperture designed to receive a straw therethrough and to vertically support the straw with respect to the support portion and a retaining portion proximate the straw support portion comprising a first edge engageable with the pull tab of the can for retaining the straw holder in an installed position on the can. The straw support portion is attached to the retaining portion by at least one connection.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a Continuation-in-Part of U.S. application Ser. No.10/888,681 filed Jul. 9, 2004, which is a Continuation-in-Part of U.S.application Ser. No. 10/684,882, filed Oct. 14, 2003. The entirecontents of U.S. application Ser. Nos. 10/888,681 and 10/684,882 areincorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The invention relates to a straw holder for supporting and orienting adrinking straw in an opening of a beverage container such as a bottle orcan.

2. Description of the Related Art

Consumers of canned beverages under certain circumstances may prefer todrink directly from a can through a straw. While driving a car, forexample, use of a straw to drink liquid decreases the likelihood ofspillage and obviates the requirement for tipping the can whichinterrupts a driver's view of the road. Furthermore some consumersprefer to drink through a straw to avoid contact with the top of the canwhich may include a layer of dirt, grime or other impurities that havesettled on the can during transport and storage.

Use of a straw addresses the above problems, but presents a problem whena too-short straw falls into a too-long bottle. In addition, carbondioxide bubbles from a carbonated beverage may accumulate on the strawand cause it to rise out of the bottle. It would, therefore, bedesirable to support the straw vertically in the bottle so that itcannot fall in or rise out. At the same time, it would be desirable tostabilize the angular position of the straw so that it cannot rotatewithin the mouth of the can. A device addressing this problem could alsobe used by invalids who may not have full use of their hands.

Beverage cans typically have a pop-top tab or pull tab which aremanipulated by a user to open the can. The pull tab on a can issometimes used to hold a straw by pivoting the pull tab approximately180 degrees such that the end of the pull tab is positioned over thehole. However, the hole in the pull tab may not hold the straw with aninterference fit. In addition, the manipulation of the pull tab forholding a straw requires manual dexterity and strength which may exceedthe capabilities of some users such as the elderly, disabled people andyoung children. Another problem with the use of the pull tab as a strawholder it that the pop-top has a propensity to break under the requiredmanipulation and it therefore not reliable.

The problem of stabilizing a straw with respect to the lip of a cup isaddressed by U.S. Pat. No. 5,823,493, which discloses a straw holder cutfrom a sheet material such as paper. The holder includes a retainingportion having an aperture which receives a standard drinking strawtherethrough, and a pair of wings having ends which are clipped togetherand fitted against the outside of the cup.

The problem of stabilizing the position of a straw in a bottle by meansof a simple fabricated device does not appear to have been solved. U.S.Pat. No. 3,606,156 discloses a drinking straw formed with an intakeportion received in a bottle, a helical portion fitted around the neckof the bottle, and an outlet to which suction is applied by a consumer.The object is to stabilize the position of a straw for use by smallchildren, but the circuitous path of the straw requires considerableeffort to draw liquid. Further, the specially formed straw is a threedimensional object which is relatively expensive to manufacture andinconvenient to store and transport in any quantity. As such it is notsuitable for use as a “give-away” item with a bottled beverage.

Other prior art describes straw holders for positioning a straw withrespect to the lip of a cup. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,070,495 and5,823,493. The latter discloses a straw holder which can be cut from asheet material and relies on the straw itself to position the holder onthe cup.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,961,510 discloses a cover for a can. This solves twoproblems of protecting a user from the dirt accumulated on the can coverand preventing inadvertent spills. However, this reference merelydisclose a cover having through holes and does not disclose supporting astraw.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of the present invention is to provide a simply andeconomically manufactured device for stabilizing the position of a strawreceived in the mouth of a beverage container such as a bottle or can.

The object of the present invention is achieved by a straw holder forsupporting a drinking straw in the mouth of a can having a pull tab, thestraw holder being formed of a flexible sheet material and including astraw support portion dimensioned for placement above the mouth of a canand comprising an aperture designed to receive a straw therethrough andto vertically support the straw with respect to the support portion. Thestraw holder also includes a retaining portion arranged proximate thestraw support portion. The retaining portion includes a first edge forengaging with the pull tab of the can for retaining the straw holder inan installed position on the can. The straw support portion is attachedto the retaining portion by at least one connection.

The first edge is formed by a slit or a cutout portion of the flexiblesheet material. The slit may be rectilinear or curved. The flexiblesheet material may comprise paper, cardboard, or plastic such aspolyurethane. The sheet material is preferably die-cut to form the slitsor cutouts which define the aperture and the first edge portion. Thestraw holder is preferably two-dimensional when not in use, and may bestacked to provide considerable economy of space. Since the straw holdermay be manufactured cheaply, the straw holder according to the presentinvention may be given away with a straw at the point of sale of thebeverage container.

The straw holder, being relatively planar and facing the user wheninstalled on a beverage container, may have advertising or otherinformation presented thereon. Instead of or in addition to theadvertising, the straw holder may have indications to facilitateidentifying an owner of the can. For example, the straw holder may havea plurality of break-off or tear-away tabs with numbers such that anowner of one can tears off a tab with the number one and another usertears off a tab with a number two so that they can identify the owner ofeach of the cans.

The straw holder may also be bendable or foldable to form athree-dimensional object and include a second aperture for receiving thestraw. In this embodiment, the straw in received through one aperture onone side of the folded straw holder and passes through the secondaperture on another side of the straw holder. The flexible sheetmaterial from which the straw holder is formed may include holdingelements engageable with each other for maintaining the straw holder inthe folded position.

The three-dimensional object formed by folding the straw holder may bein the shape of a cartoon character or other character for promotionalpurposes and/or for amusement. The straw holder of this embodiment hasthe function of preventing too short a straw from falling into the canor bottle. This embodiment may further comprise adhesive applied to theflexible sheet material proximate one of the apertures so that the strawholder adheres to the can or bottle.

Other objects and features of the present invention will become apparentfrom the following detailed description considered in conjunction withthe accompanying drawings. It is to be understood, however, that thedrawings are designed solely for purposes of illustration and not as adefinition of the limits of the invention, for which reference should bemade to the appended claims. It should be further understood that thedrawings are not necessarily drawn to scale and that, unless otherwiseindicated, they are merely intended to conceptually illustrate thestructures and procedures described herein.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the drawings, wherein like reference characters denote similarelements throughout the several views:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a straw holder according to an embodiment ofthe present invention having a retention slit;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of a can on which the straw holder of FIG. 1 maybe used;

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the straw holder of FIG. 1 arranged in theinstalled state on the can of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a sectional elevation view of the straw holder of FIG. 1arranged on the can of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a plan view of another embodiment of a straw holder having aretention cutout;

FIG. 6 is a plan view of the straw holder of FIG. 5 in a partiallyinstalled state on a can;

FIG. 7 is a plan view of the straw holder of FIG. 5 in a fully installedstate on the can;

FIG. 8 is a plan view of another embodiment of a straw holder;

FIG. 8 a is a plan view of a further embodiment of a straw holder havingslits extending to a side of the straw holder;

FIG. 9 is an elevation view of the straw holder of FIG. 8 fitted on abottle;

FIG. 10 is a plan view of a further embodiment of a straw holder havingtwo straw-receiving apertures;

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the straw holder of FIG. 10 in a foldedstate;

FIG. 12 is a plan view of the straw holder of FIG. 10 arranged on apromotional CD; and

FIG. 13 is a plan view of the straw holder of FIG. 10 with additionalflaps for connection to a promotional CD.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PRESENTLY PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

FIG. 1 depicts a first embodiment of a straw holder 10 according to thepresent invention. The straw holder includes a straw support portion 12with an aperture 13 dimensioned to receive a straw therethrough in aninterference fit, and a retaining portion 14 separated from the strawsupport portion 12 by slit 15. The slit terminates at a pair of holes 17which relieve strain so that a tear will not readily propagate throughthe retaining portion 14. An edge portion 16 of the slit 15 on theretaining portion 14 faces the straw supporting portion 12 and isarranged to engage a pull tab 3 of a can 1 (see FIG. 2). In this andother embodiments described herein, the straw holder is made of aflexible sheet material such as cardboard or plastic, wherein the slitsand other defining features are preferably formed by die-cutting.

When the edge portion 16 is engaged with the pull tab 3, the aperture 13is aligned with an opening 5 of the can as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. Inthe installed state, the edge portion 16 is engaged under the pull tab 3of the can 1. Once a straw 19 is inserted through the aperture 13 andenters through the opening 5, the straw 19 has limited lateral movementbecause of the interaction of the straw with the sides of the opening 5which prevents the straw holder 10 from becoming disengaged from thefrom the pull tab 3, thereby securing the straw holder 10 on the can. Asfurther shown in FIG. 3, the straw holder 10 covers the top of the can1. This feature helps prevent insects such as bees from entering thecan. The straw holder 10 also prevents other airborne debris fromentering the can.

FIG. 5 shows a straw holder 110 according to another embodiment of thepresent invention. Straw holder 110 includes a straw support portion 112having an aperture 113 for receiving a straw, and a retaining portion114 separated from the straw support portion by a cutout 115. The cutout115 is open in that a channel 125 extends from the cutout 115 to theside of the straw holder 110 between section 124 of the retainingportion 114 and section 122 of the straw support portion 112. Thisembodiment allows a different insertion process than the embodiment ofFIGS. 1-4. The straw holder 110 may be slid into place such that theconnection 121 between the pull tab 3 and the top of the can slidesthrough the channel 125 until the connection 121 is located within thecutout 115. FIG. 6 shows the partially inserted straw holder 110 whichis inserted along arrow A. FIG. 7 shows the fully inserted straw holder110.

FIG. 5 further shows a plurality of break-away or tear-off tabs 135which may be used as identification of the can or bottle on which thestraw holder 110 is placed by removal of one of the tabs. As shown inFIG. 5, the tabs may have number printed thereon to facilitateidentification. Alternatively, the tabs could form part of a patterndesign which facilitates identification when one or a subset of the tabsis/are removed.

FIG. 8 shows a straw holder 210 according further embodiment including astraw support portion 212 and a retaining portion 214 separated from thestraw support portion by a pair of slits 215 having respective mutuallyfacing edge portions 216 which are spaced to engage a bottle adjacent toits mouth. In this embodiment, the edge portions are curved edgeportions which face each other concavely. Rectilinear slits may also beused. Each of the edge portion 216 is individually engagable with a pulltab 3 similarly to the edge portion 6 of FIG. 1, as described above.

FIG. 9 shows the straw holder 210 fitted to a bottle 2 having a mouth 4,ramps 6 which serve to retain a screw-on cap (not shown) and a flange 8.The straw holder 210 is fitted to the bottle with the straw supportportion 212 against the mouth for supporting a straw 19 received in theaperture 213 (FIG. 8), and the bottle retaining portion 214 is flexedout of the plane of the straw support portion 212 so that the curvededge portions 216 engage the ramps 6 to retain the straw holder on thebottle. The straw retaining portion may also engage the flange of aconventional bottle which does not have ramps, e.g. a beverage bottlewith a crimped-on cap.

FIG. 8 a shows an alternative embodiment of the straw holder 210′ whichis similar to the straw holder 210 of FIG. 8, with the exception thatone end of the each of the slits 215′ extends to the side of the strawholder 210′.

FIGS. 10 and 11 show yet another embodiment of a straw holder 300according to the present invention. The straw holder 300 is made from aflexible sheet material such as cardboard or plastic, wherein the slitsand other defining features are preferably formed by die-cutting.However, the straw holder includes two apertures 313, 314 designed toreceive a straw therethrough with an interference fit. The straw holder300 further includes a tab 302 arranged at one end thereof and a slot304 arranged at another opposing end thereof. The straw holder 300 maybe folded along fold lines 308 and 306 and the tab 302 inserted into theslot 304 to form the three-dimensional figure shown in FIG. 11. In thisconfiguration, a straw 19 is inserted through both the apertures 313 and314. An adhesive may be applied to the bottom of the figure, i.e., inthe base area 316 arranged between the two fold lines 308. The adhesivemay be applied as an adhesive backing with a peel-off layer which can beremoved prior to use. The straw support portion may thereby be firmlyadhered to the mouth of the can (as shown in FIG. 11) or a bottle. Thisembodiment of the inventive straw holder may be used for preventing ashort straw from falling into a bottle or can.

Instead of being folded into a three-dimensional figure, a straw holdermay be arranged as a flat material with an aperture such as aperture 313for receiving a straw therethrough with an interference fit. Thisalternative embodiment may also include an adhesive to firmly adhere tothe mouth of the can or bottle. This simple device may be used forpreventing too short a straw from falling into the can or bottle.Instead of being folded as shown in FIG. 11, a straw holder may includeany number of apertures and be folded in various configurations. Forexample, the straw holder may have three or more apertures and befolded, e.g., in an S-shaped, spiral, or other configuration so that thestraw passes through a plurality of apertures.

As shown in FIG. 10, the straw holder 300 may also include one or twoslits 315 which are arranged on the base area 316. These slits 315 maybe used to engage the beverage can or bottle to hold the straw holder300 thereon, as described above with reference to slits 15, 215, and215′. Instead of slits 315, the straw holder 300 may have a cutout suchas the cutout 115 for connecting the straw holder to a beverage can.

The straw holder 300 may be arranged about a promotional item 319 suchas a CD or DVD as shown in FIG. 12. For example, the straw holder couldbe designed in the shape of a character in an upcoming movie and thepromotional item could include promotional song or video clips/trailersfor the upcoming movie. According to this embodiment, the straw holder300 is folded around the promotional item and provided with a drinkpurchase. Instead of having a tab 302 and slot 304, the straw holder maybe permanently connected using an adhesive. If the promotional item istoo big to fit within the folded straw holder, the straw holder mayinclude flaps 321 formed by slits for holding the promotional item asshown in FIG. 13. Instead of being formed by slits, the flaps maycomprise folded flaps on opposing ends of the straw holder.

Thus, while there have shown and described and pointed out fundamentalnovel features of the invention as applied to a preferred embodimentthereof, it will be understood that various omissions and substitutionsand changes in the form and details of the devices illustrated, and intheir operation, may be made by those skilled in the art withoutdeparting from the spirit of the invention. For example, it is expresslyintended that all combinations of those elements which performsubstantially the same function in substantially the same way to achievethe same results are within the scope of the invention. Moreover, itshould be recognized that structures and/or elements shown and/ordescribed in connection with any disclosed form or embodiment of theinvention may be incorporated in any other disclosed or described orsuggested form or embodiment as a general matter of design choice. It isthe intention, therefore, to be limited only as indicated by the scopeof the claims appended hereto.

1. A straw holder for supporting a drinking straw in the mouth of a canhaving a pull tab, the straw holder being formed of a flexible sheetmaterial and comprising: a straw support portion dimensioned forplacement above the mouth of a can and comprising an aperture designedto receive a straw therethrough and to vertically support said strawwith respect to said support portion; and a retaining portion proximatesaid straw support portion comprising a first edge engageable with thepull tab of the can for retaining the straw holder in an installedposition on the can, said straw support portion being attached to saidretaining portion by at least one connection.
 2. The straw holder ofclaim 1, wherein said straw support portion and retaining portion areformed as one piece.
 3. The straw holder of claim 1, wherein said firstedge portion is formed by a first slit in said sheet of flexiblematerial, said first slit separating said straw support portion fromsaid bottle retaining portion.
 4. The straw holder of claim 3, whereinsaid slit is rectilinear.
 5. The straw holder of claim 3, wherein saidedge portion is curved and faces said straw support portion concavely.6. The straw holder of claim 3, wherein one end of said slit extendsthrough a side of the flexible sheet material.
 7. The straw holder ofclaim 1, further comprising a second edge portion, wherein said firstand second edge portions are spaced apart for engaging a mouth of abottle.
 8. The straw holder of claim 7, wherein each of said first andsecond edge portions is individually engageable with the pull tab of thecan for retaining the straw holder in an installed position on the can.9. The straw holder of claim 7, wherein said first and second edgeportions are formed by parallel substantially rectilinear slits.
 10. Thestraw holder of claim 7, wherein said first and second edge portions arecurved edge portions which face each other concavely.
 11. The strawholder of claim 7, wherein said first and second edge portions areformed by slits, each of said slits having one end extending through aside of the flexible sheet material.
 12. The straw holder of claim 1,wherein said straw holder substantially covers a top of the can.
 13. Thestraw holder of claim 1, wherein said edge portion is formed by a cutoutin said flexible sheet.
 14. The straw holder of claim 13, said cutoutbeing open to one side of said flexible sheet so that the pull tab isinsertable through the one side of the flexible sheet into the region ofthe cutout.
 15. The straw holder of claim 13, said cutout beingcircular.
 16. The straw holder of claim 1, a distance between saidaperture and said first edge is dimensioned such that when a strawinserted through said aperture abuts one of the pull tab and a side ofthe can opening facing the pull tab, the first edge remains engaged withthe pull tab.
 17. The straw holder of claim 1, said straw holder furthercomprising a plurality of removable tabs for indicating ownership of astraw holder.
 18. A straw holder for supporting a drinking straw in themouth of a can or bottle, the straw holder being formed of a flexiblesheet material and comprising: a straw support portion dimensioned forplacement above the mouth of a can and comprising an aperture designedto receive a straw therethrough and to vertically support said strawwith respect to said support portion, whereby a straw that is too shortis prevented from falling into the can or bottle by said straw supportportion; and a retaining portion comprising an adhesive for adhereing tothe can or bottle.
 19. A straw holder for supporting a drinking straw inthe mouth of a can or bottle, the straw holder being formed of aflexible sheet material and comprising: a first straw support portiondimensioned for placement above the mouth of a can and comprising afirst aperture designed to receive a straw therethrough and tovertically support said straw with respect to said first supportportion; and a second straw support portion dimensioned for placementabove the mouth of a can and comprising a second aperture designed toreceive a straw therethrough and to vertically support said straw withrespect to said second support portion, said flexible sheet materialbeing bendable or foldable to an install position so that a single strawis receivable through said first and second apertures, whereby a strawthat is too short is prevented from falling into the can or bottle. 20.The straw holder of claim 19, wherein the flexible sheet materialincludes a first holding element and a second holding element engageablewith said first holding element for holding said flexible sheet materialin the install position.
 21. The straw holder of claim 19, furthercomprising an adhesive arranged on said flexible sheet proximate saidfirst aperture such that said straw holder adheres to said can or bottlein the install position.
 22. The straw holder of claim 19, furthercomprising a retaining portion proximate said straw support portioncomprising a first edge engageable with the pull tab of the can forretaining the straw holder in an installed position on the can, saidstraw support portion being attached to said retaining portion by atleast one connection.
 23. The straw holder of claim 22, wherein saidfirst edge portion is formed by a first slit in said sheet of flexiblematerial, said first slit separating said straw support portion fromsaid bottle retaining portion.
 24. The straw holder of claim 22, furthercomprising a second edge portion, wherein said first and second edgeportions are spaced apart for engaging a mouth of a bottle.
 25. Thestraw holder of claim 24, wherein each of said first and second edgeportions is individually engageable with the pull tab of the can forretaining the straw holder in an installed position on the can.
 26. Thestraw holder of claim 24, wherein said first and second edge portionsare formed by slits.
 27. The straw holder of claim 19, furthercomprising flaps for receiving edges of a promotional item.
 28. Thestraw holder of claim 27, wherein the promotional item is one of a CDand DVD.
 29. The straw holder of claim 19, wherein said straw holder isarranged and dimensioned for receiving a promotional item in the installposition.
 30. The straw holder of claim 29, wherein the promotional itemis one of a CD and DVD.